The Weapons behind the Magic - Trident
by Ronin of Dreams
A warm greeting to you all, friends and companions indeed. I am glad to see so many of you have returned to my humble residence for another few tidbits of knowledge regarding the Forge arts. Today I bring to you a lesson based on the elegant weapons of reach, polearms, with the centerpiece being held today by the Trident itself. Lances and Augurs are both present and used, as are Halberds, but the Trident of Etian does have a special place in Lore's history to have inspired this lesson.
The beginning of any polearm, regardless of final intent, traditionally begins with selecting a length of local hardwood. Depending on the availability of carpentry and its prices, this may mean the weaponsmith may need to turn a branch or trunk into the cylindrical rod for the haft on their own. Ash and cedar are fairly common, as are oak, but it really depends more on the location and the smith for what they traditionally prefer to use. With most staves, this is where the weapon would be handed off for decoration and any enchantment work to be done on it... but we are not here for simple staves.
Rather, the haft is at this point prepared by sanding down one end to a rounded point for the metal tip to be attached to the polearm, and a small hole as well. The metalwork here is slightly more complicated than with a katana, for it requires far more skillful use of the anvil than just as a metal block to hammer against. With the trident, compared to other polearms, this is even more important. Most smiths will vary in how they tackle the actual trident, so I will merely attempt to explain my method of forging it.
I treat each tine of the three-pronged weapon as a separate entity, heating the metal and hammering out the rough form of the spearhead tip onto its own short metal support. Then I proceed to fashion the tip into the very sharp and lethal object it is intended to be before seeking to join the prongs together. It saves a bit of trouble with confined workspace to do so beforehand, though it means working more with tongs than gloved hands on the next step. Then, carefully, the rounded point of the anvil is used to coax the two prongs on the side into a curve so that is can be joined successfully.
At this stage of the project, the trident needs to be brought together. Here is where the prongs are welded together by pressure and heat reintroduced to the metal. Sadly, I hear there are Terran techniques which make this slow and delicate process of welding practically archaic, but we smiths do as we must. Then an extra bit of metal is added to the trident's head to form a solid base, whose end opposite the prongs is fashioned into a beaten cone. This cone of metal is then heated and attached to the end of the wood, being careful not to let the haft catch alight, and a hot metal rivet is inserted through the metal and the hole in the wood to firmly fasten it. Not all polearms use the rivet fastener, but the trident is a workhorse of piercing attacks and not an expendable end like most spears, and so I find it necessary.
Friends and companions, I hope that the time spent with myself has been as productive to you as it was enjoyable to me to give you such instruction. If there is any subject, whether among the Forge Arts or those among the Magical relating to Creation of the many weapons, armors, and items at your disposal, feel free to simply ask and I shall do my best to accommodate your wishes.
Feel free to leave a message for me with Yulgar at his Inn or, if Falerin is feeling generous, perhaps he will direct you to a device allowing you to email me at talonmk5@yahoo.com with such questions or requests.
